Story Lines and Myths in 20th Century Immigration Historiography
Opening Comments – Where are the immigrants?
• Scholarship and autobiography
• John Higham, STRANGERS IN THE LAND
• Mark I Choate, EMIGRANT NATION; THE MAKING OF ITALY ABROAD
• African Americans
Pre 1790|1790|1820|1880|19
Colonial Period
Early National Period
Middle 19th Century
Immigration High Tide The “New Immigrants”
Mid 20th Century
Late 20th Century
The General Theory – Push/PullPush
Pull
The Mudsill Myth – “La Miseria”
• Difficulties in discerning differences between those who left and those who stayed behind
• Emigration is a positively selective process• Motives for emigrating– Advancing the family economy– Avoiding conscription or jail
• Social strata of repatriates – Benestante, Americani, and new Americani
Social Stratification in Franza – 1900 & 1960
Joseph Lopreato, Peasants No More: Social Class and Social Change in an Underdeveloped Society (1967)
The fallacy of using schooling as a measure of an immigrant’s worth
• Schooling in 19th and early 20th century Italy and America– The significance of this for assessing the character
and resources of emigrants?– In the U.S. the Common School provided 6 to 8
years of instruction to students– In Italy village schools offered 3 years [at best]
American Responses to Immigration
• Open Door– Motivations• Humanitarian• Economic
• Restriction – Motivations• Economic• Nativist
History of Nativism
A Case Study of Pull Immigration The Tirocchi of Providence, RI
A Classic Chain Migration
Origins - Guarcino
Madame Tirocchi{Anna}
Madame Tirocchi her Butler Exchange Shop – “A & L Tirocchi” ca 1911
M. Tirocchi with Shop Girls
The new home of “Tirocchi Gowns”514 Broadway - 1915
Laura Tirocchi-Cella and Dr. Cella
Eugenia Tirocchi – Grocerier and Landlord
The Tirocchi Men
Frank Tirocchi – padrone, pharmacy clerk, trucker
Tirocchi Cousins – sand and gravel merchants, concrete block
manufactures, construction contractors, tire recapping plant, auto service stations, dairy plant
and home delivery service, commercial laundry, etc.
Federico – missionary, parish priest
Ellis Island – The symbol
• 1982 – 1924 – 20+ Million immigrants pass through
Ellis Island– Peak year – 1907 – 1,004,756 pass
through the station– 560, 971 enter in 1921– 1921 Quota Law set nationality limits
for each nationality to 3% of their number in the 1910 U. S. population and total annual limit of 358,000
– 1924 Quota Law moved the “reference date” to 1890 and reduced annual quota to 164,000
The Ellis Island Myth – “our name was changed by officials at Ellis Island”
• Time spent and nature of the processing of immigrants at Ellis Island– Ship
passenger lists– Eligibility
screening– The “six
second physical”
– Utility of the Myth
Americanization/Assimilation - Theories
• Racial implications of the “new immigrant” concept
• Red Scare and the intensity of Americanization efforts
Melting Pot or Salad bowl
The Melting Pot at Ford
Immigrants’ responses to assimilation
• Family economic strategies –Old or new world locus •Schooling for children•Economic choices •Language and citizenship decisions – “language loyalty”
The Myth of the Marginal Man
Americanization – Institutions
• Schools• Settlement Houses• Industry• Public Libraries• Religion• Ethnic Press
George F. Johnson and the Square Deal• New employees at Endicott Johnson
were given a copy of a pamphlet called "An EJ Worker's First Lesson in the Square Deal."
• It read, in part:• "To the new EJ worker: You have
now joined the happy family in the square deal. If you are faithful, loyal, and reliable, you will earn a good living under fair conditions. You are indeed a part of the company. Remember that you are cared for when sick, medical and hospital services are yours, privileges of many kinds are yours. Your friend, George F. Johnson."
Religion
• The American “Irish” Church and Immigrants• “National Parishes”– Protestant evangelicals – Italians– Trusteeism – Other Roman Catholic groups – “The Polish National
Catholic Church -1897”• Ownership of Church property• Parish government in secular matters by parishioners• Parishioner authority in assignment of Priests• Appointment of Polish Bishops in the U.S. – participation of
clergy and Laity
Schools – Public and Parochial
Chazy Central Rural School
Home Economics
Physical Education
Industrial Education
Adult Education